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McCalman out for six weeks

Western Force utility forward Ben McCalman is set to miss the third Test against England in Sydney on Saturday due to a shoulder injury.

The 28-year-old player will be sidelined for up to six weeks after he fractured his scapula in the second Test.

Australia have lost their first Test series on home soil against the Grand Slam Six Nations champions after they lost the first two of three-match Test series.

McCalman, who came off the bench in the second Test, hurt his shoulder blade in his first involvement of the game.

The back-row, who has made 48 appearances for his country since his debut in 2010, played out the rest of the game, with no replacement on the bench.

Head coach Michael Cheika said it was disappointing that McCalman didn’t have a chance to push his starting credentials.

“He didn’t really get a chance to do what he does… he’s proven for us over the time I’ve been involved that he’s a serious campaigner,” Cheika told the official ARU website.

“He would’ve been a chance (to start this week) but I wasn’t unhappy with the back row last week.

“There was a few basic errors but I thought they worked hard.”

Former Reds and current Bath loose forward Leroy Houston will join up with the squad in Sydney to replace McCalman.

McCalman will likely be the only forced change to the Wallabies side for the final Test, though Cheika flagged some other potential reshuffles.

“We’ll probably make a couple of changes,” he said.

“I thought I might make a couple each game just to have a look at guys who have shown either through Super Rugby or through the series [that] they’re vying for spots. We’ll sort those [changes] out over the next day or so.”